Bellator 57 Bout with Hawk Will Be Brutal, Hollett Says

The Maximum Fighting Championship veteran was straightforward in
his prediction for his
Bellator 57 clash with John Hawk on
Saturday.
When Hollett (Pictured, File Photo) collides with fellow light
heavyweight tournament hopeful Hawk at Casino Rama in Rama,
Ontario, Canada, he wants to send an emphatic message to observers
and future opponents alike.

“When I go into the cage, I want to finish the fight and make sure
the fans get their money’s worth. I’m coming out in my Bellator
debut to show everyone what I’m all about and get after that
hundred grand,” Hollett said. “I want the fans and everyone in the
tournament to watch this fight with John Hawk and go, ‘What the
f---! I can’t believe that just happened!’ It’s going to be a
brutal finish, no matter how I do it.”

Hollett has won four straight fights ahead of his showdown with
Hawk, a 31-year-old Ohioan coming off a successful Bellator debut
on Sept. 24.

“John Hawk is trying to keep me out of the Bellator light
heavyweight tournament,” said Hollett. “That’s how I’ve been
looking at this fight. That’s what’s been motivating me to train so
hard. It’s been on my mind every day. I’m not going to let that
happen.”

Though Hollett holds edges in both experience and notoriety, “The
Hulk” expects his opponent to take a direct approach when the cage
door closes. In response, Hollett plans to impose his will on his
foe with little regard for what Hawk brings to the table.

“I feel like John Hawk has nothing to lose and everything to gain
in this fight,” said Hollett. “I’m expecting for him to come right
at me, and, personally, I think that’s a big mistake. I don’t
really focus much on my opponents before I fight them, and I
haven’t been spending a lot of energy studying John Hawk leading
into this fight. I’m primarily focusing on what I’m going to do to
him.”

A Nova Scotia transplant now training with Jackson’s
Mixed Martial Arts in Albuquerque, N.M., Hollett says the
decision to join the vaunted camp was an easy one.

“I wanted to fight the better fighters, so I knew that I had to
train with better people and fighters of higher caliber,” Hollett
said. “Greg Jackson’s is the best gym in the world, in my
opinion.”

While Hollett was training many miles away in Albuquerque, his
grandfather passed away. Though it was a difficult turn of events,
Hollett says he used the circumstance as motivation to train even
harder.

“I was very close to [my grandfather]. He was very supportive of my
fight career [and] went to all my fights back home,” said Hollett.
“He knew I was going to fight for Bellator and he knew how great of
an opportunity this was, so I’m dedicating this fight to him.”